1. The aim of nursing research is to produce a sound foundation for evidence-based nursing; the job of nurses is to make the best possible use of that foundation and apply the knowledge produced to the practice of nursing. 2. The purpose of this study was to identify and describe barriers to and facilitators of research utilization from the point of view of Finnish Registered Nurses. 3. The BARRIERS Scale was administered to 316 nurses in two major hospitals; 253 nurses returned the questionnaire, giving a response rate of 80%. The structured data were processed with SPSS 9.0, and the unstructured data were interpreted using the method of content analysis. 4. The main barriers to research utilization identified by the respondents were: the fact that most research is published in a foreign language; that physicians will not co-operate with implementation; and that statistical analyses are difficult to understand. The facilitators mentioned most often were nurses' positive attitudes and abilities. Other important facilitators included the support and activity of a ward sister as well as encouragement, a favourable attitude and collaboration on the part of all staff members. 5. The findings are discussed in relation to the Finnish healthcare context and nurse education, and evidence-based nursing practice.